Identifying Consigned Horses

On January 18, Tattersalls will be holding their 2010 January Mixed Sales at the Meadowlands.  This sale is usually well attended as many horsemen attending are looking for a horse that is 'Meadowlands ready'; a horse that can drop right into the entry box.  Many of the horses of racing age in this sale will have been qualified and racing prior to the sale.

What does this mean to a horseplayer?  While no guarantee, it stands to figure if a consigned horse is entered to race, the current owner is hoping for a good performance in order to stimulate interest in the horse to increase the eventual auction price of the horse.  In other words, a legitimate handicapping angle (similar to knowing ahead of time which horses have been claimed).  Unfortunately, unless you have the time and patience to cross reference the sales catalog against the racing program, there is a good chance you will be in the dark.  

If race tracks can list in their past performance pages which horse are eligible to races like the Meadowlands Pace or the Hambletonian, it stands to reason they can identify which horses have been consigned to a recognized horse sale; especially if it is being held at the same race track.  If a horse is consigned to a horse sale occurring within a month, it should be specified in the program.  If not specifying next to the name of each horse, on the bottom of each race page there can be a list of horses consigned to an auction.  Not only will this benefit the handicapper, it may stimulate interest in the horse amongst horsemen who were not planning on attending the sale.